A good precursor to the Oscar race is the audience award at the Middleburg Film Festival. Cord Jefferson’s “American Fiction” just won the award and has, again, firmly re-established itself as a potential Best Picture nominee. No, it will likely not win come Oscar night, but it’s gaining some much-needed momentum after its TIFF win this past September. Jefferson’s film has been winning a lot of regional fall festivals (Mill Valley, Heartland, San Diego)— audience reactions have been overwhelmingly good.